Moonshot Academy — 10 Haitian Women Entrepreneurs building platforms for a sustainable Haiti

Original Pos can be found HERE

Ten Promising Entrepreneurs building solutions for a #SustainableHaiti

We are proud to introduce the 10 women business leaders selected for the Moonshot Academy Rocket #1, bringing Haiti a few steps closer to Self-Sustainability:

Christine Laraque, Founder of Ateliers Co_Lab.

Ateliers Co_Lab conceives and promotes safe, sustainable, functional and aesthetic architecture with a particular concern for the comfort and human dignity of users.

“By creating and promoting great architecture we envision reshaping and optimizing how the structures in our cities are designed and built, while educating our customers and the citizens in the communities we serve on how to be more environment friendly.”

Sandyna Sandaire Jerome, Founder of Notè Peyim

Notè Peyim is a mobile application that connects people to a database of notaries throughout the country. Notè Peyim aims to solve the difficulties that citizens face to find reliable notaries who can provide legal services for sustainable land management according to their local jurisdiction.

Olguine Metellus, Co-founder, COPO.

Coffee has traditionally been an important crop Haiti, serving as a key source of income for rural Haitians. However, the competitiveness of the coffee sector in Haiti has been declining over recent years due to a combination of external and domestic factors.

COPO’s mission is to revitalize the Haitian coffee industry and help the Haitian farmers regain their worldwide heritage as the leading exporters of coffee. Packed in a biodegradable package, COPO produces a black premium-grade organic, arabica coffee from the mountains of Haiti located in the height from 1200 to 1600 meters of altitude.

Daniele Jean-Pierre, Co-Founder, Zimbali Networks.

Zimbali Networks is a global payments ecosystem that accelerates digital financial inclusion. With 1.7 billion adults unbanked globally, including 68% of the Haitian population, Zimbali Networks aims to increase financial inclusion by making digital financial services accessible to micro merchants and the unbanked. Zimbali Networks is the developer of Justpayme, a digital payments platform that offers a full complement of financial services such as merchant payments, P2P payments, remittances and credit.

Nel-Ange St Cyr, Founder of VALPLAST.

Solid waste management represents a great challenge for actors in Haiti. Several factors are at the root of this problem: increased urban growth due to the rural exodus, the absence of a land use planning policy and of waste treatment centers or waste disposal sites, and the lack of environmental education related to waste prevention. Valplast’s mission is to recycle plastic waste in Haiti by transforming it into paving stones and bricks that can be used to build sustainable homes and roads. The pavers are made of molten plastic mixed with sand, are designed in different shapes and sizes, and can be marketed nationally and internationally.

Christelle C Paul, Founder of Atelier Calla.

“An estimated 400,000 Haitians engage in at least some craft work, with roughly 1 million people directly supported by artisan producers”, according to a 2010 report financed by the Canadian artisan advocacy group BRANDAID Project and CHF International, a U.S. group now known as Global Communities that helps foster sustainable development.

Atelier Calla envisions creating sustainable jobs and economic growth while promoting artisanal culture through the sustainable production of home decor, jewelry, accessories, and tableware made from upcycled horn, bone and wood.

Bernice Nere Charles is the founder of Cosmos Solution.

One of the greatest benefits that Haiti has as a tropical climate is an immense concentration of sunlight. This makes it a prime candidate for adopting solar power and consequently increase the productivity of population by connecting them to a power source.

Cosmos Solution aims to provide clean energy solutions to Haitian market where access to power and electricity is currently scarce and large unavailable. Cosmos Solution’s clean and renewable energy offering includes the installation of solar-powered panels as well as biodigesters.

Lisa Jude Georges, Founder of Regal — a marketplace for fresh local agricultural goods.

Agriculture and markets in Haiti face several challenges that affect consumers every day, including inconveniences in accessing fresh food on demand where most fresh produce is sold in overcrowded markets, food waste from poor storage and delivery, lack of quality control resulting in variations in freshness, and inability to trace the goods from farm to market. Regal’s mission is to change the way Haitians eat every day by providing convenient, healthy and affordable products accessible in a centralized digital platform.

Vanessa Pierre,Founder of EcoRenew Solutions.

EcoRenew Solutions is transforming garbage to gold in Haiti and curbing the pollution crisis by focusing on recycling land and sea waste. The company creates paver bricks from discarded plastic that can be used for landscaping, driveways, roofs and building material.

Melissa Sanon, Founder of MeliT Organic Teas & Spices.

There is a lack of diversity and financing opportunities for the development of agricultural value chain and value-added products in Haiti as well as a lack of economic opportunities for women living in remote areas where poverty and food insecurity are prevalent.

MeliT aims to increase overall earned revenues for female farmers by supporting the planting of herbs and spices that can be transformed into value-added products such as herbal infusion, leaf and spice powder. Ultimately, MeliT aims to promotes the unique taste, aroma, and health benefits of tropical herbs and spices while boosting the livelihoods of female farmers in Haiti.

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Tune in on Aug 22 and 23rd, 2020, for the annual #SHE_BUILDS_THEFUTURE Festival, and hear these Moonshot Leaders pitch their businesses in the Shark Tank. Register to attend: https://thefuturefestivalayiti2020.splashthat.com/